Adolf Hitler
Remembered today for his genocidal impact on history, Hitler is here presented as a father figure, a supreme military commander and—at the film’s opening—as a savior sent by heaven. The entire film is directed toward affirming Hitler as the man who will restore the Germanic people to their rightful place of glory in the world.
Rudolf Hess
Hess is second-in-command to Hitler and is the man who convenes the Reich Party Congress. He is most famous in the film for his assertion that Hitler and Germany are one and the same.
Joseph Goebbels
As the head man in charge of Nazi propaganda it must be assumed that he was an integral component in the making of the film, though it must be asserted that this is a vision primarily seen through the more aesthetically sophisticated eye of its director. His speech at the Congress is notable for suggesting that enthusiasm is what allows propaganda to be successful.
Hitler Youth (Various)
The Hitler Youth were males between 14 and 18 who dressed in Nazi uniforms and were a primal strategy in the Party’s propaganda efforts. These were in reality young men into fascist ideology was hammered and who were actually being groomed as soldiers in preparation of what their leaders knew was a coming war. In the film, however, they are presented more akin to something like the Boy Scouts.
Otto Frank
As the head of the state press, Frank was integral to the process of propaganda. He is notable in the film for asserting that truth is the basis of the Nazi press, yet it must also be noted that he was subsequently tried and convicted for war crimes related to his association with the more criminal and less propaganda-related arm of the Nazi Party, the SS.
